After spirited debate, the Representative Assembly approved a resolution calling for an end to the constitutional prohibition on appointment or election of lawyers over the age of 70 to judicial office in Michigan. After similarly spirited debate, a proposal for a rule requiring Michigan attorneys who represent clients other than in-house clients to identify the name of an active member to serve as an inventory attorney in the event of the attorney's death, disability or disappearance did not receive the Assembly's approval.
The judicial age limit proposal was among the issues presented to the Assembly by former Chief Justice Marilyn Kelly on behalf of the Judicial Selection Task Force that she co-chaired with former Michigan Supreme Court Justice James L. Ryan. A key element of the Task Force's report, urging the amendment of the Michigan Campaign Finance Act to require disclosure of expenditures for electioneering in judicial campaigns, was adopted by the Representative Assembly in 2010.
